Simple blood test can help diagnose bipolar disorder
25 October 2023Researchers have developed a new way of improving diagnosis of bipolar disorder that uses a simple blood test to identify biomarkers associated with the condition.
Researchers have developed a new way of improving diagnosis of bipolar disorder that uses a simple blood test to identify biomarkers associated with the condition.
It’s been decades since Professor Paul Fletcher last donned scrubs, but he now finds himself helping treat psychiatric patients, sometimes in full protective gear, and learning that the best strategy is to “shut up and listen” to his colleagues.
Anna Chaplin is a PhD candidate in the Department of Psychiatry who studies the association between depression and cardiovascular health in young people. Here, she tells us about teaching herself to code, her department’s support of students, and putting your mental health first.
Researchers have developed a method that could drastically accelerate the search for new drugs to treat mental health disorders such as schizophrenia.
Towards the end of the 1960s, rumours began to spread that nonconformist citizens of the USSR were being diagnosed with mental illnesses and confined to psychiatric hospitals.
People who are addicted to cocaine are particularly prone to developing habits that render their behaviour resistant to change, regardless of the potentially devastating consequences, suggests new research from the University of Cambridge. The findings may have important implications for the treatment of cocaine addiction as they help explain why such individuals take drugs even when they are aware of the negative consequences, and why they find their behaviour so difficult to change.
Hip-hop artists Tupac and Eminem are among the most iconic music artists of the past two decades, and as Dr Akeem Sule and Dr Becky Inkster, co-founders of HIP-HOP-PSYCH, write, their lyrics can provide a valuable insight into the lives of some of the people most at risk of developing mental health issues.
Why are some people prone to hallucinations? According to new research from the University of Cambridge and Cardiff University, hallucinations may come from our attempts to make sense of the ambiguous and complex world around us.
The two worlds of hip-hop and psychiatry are being brought together in a unique project led by researchers at the University of Cambridge, which aims to use the lyrics and music of artists such as Nas and Tupac to help tackle issues surrounding mental health.
The Max Perutz Science Writing Award aims to encourage and recognise outstanding written communication among MRC PhD students. The annual competition challenges entrants to write an 800-word article for the general public answering the question: 'Why does my research matter?'. This year, Julia Gottwald, a PhD student in the Department of Psychiatry, was shortlisted for her article about obsessive compulsive disorder.